Trailer Released For Film Adaptation Of Broadway Hit Wicked
Image: Trailer Screengrabs
The first look trailer for the upcoming film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical Wicked, starring Jonathan Bailey (Fellow Travelers), Cynthia Erivo (The Outsider), and Ariana Grande (Zoolander 2), has been released.
Written by Stephen Schwartz (Godspell, Pippin) and Winnie Holzman (My So-Called Life), and directed by Jon M. Chu (Crazy Rich Asians), Wicked will be released in theatres in two parts, in November 2024 and 2025.
The official synopsis reads, “In an alternate look at the land of Oz, the true heroine is wrongfully cast as the ‘wicked’ witch and actually turns out to be a freedom fighter who battles against the wizard for her homeland.”
‘The differences that we have actually make us really special’
The cast includes Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, singer-songwriter Ariana Grande as Galinda, Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Jeff Goldblum (Jurassic Park) as the Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Michelle Yeoh (Everything Everywhere All at Once) as Madame Morrible, and Bowen Yang (Saturday Night Live) as Pfannee.
Erivo told Vanity Fair that she hopes the audience watches Wicked and takes away that, “We are all different and the same, and the differences that we have actually make us really special. Hopefully we use those differences to introduce ourselves to one another. We aren’t pushing people away because they’re different, but we’re opening up because they’re special.”
Chu explained, “This is the American fairy tale. We are in a time where we are reassessing the story of life in America. What is truth? What is a happy ending? Is the yellow brick road the road to follow? Is someone really there on the other end who’s going to give you your heart’s desire?”
Will ‘Blow People’s Minds’
Back in December, Bailey teased that the film will “blow people’s minds.”
In an interview with People Magazine, Bailey shared that, “Everyone who’s involved is a theatre nerd.”
He continued, “I literally think the Oscar was just off-screen watching the scene as it took place. Me and [Ariana Grande] were very giggle-y that day, and to see Michelle Yeoh sing and be brilliant was amazing. It’s going to blow people’s minds.
“So get ready. You’ve got a year to prepare.”
Both the film and the theatrical play are based on the book Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire, which is based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum.
